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SA's cash cut dismays Murray-Darling boss

The chair of the Murray-Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) has criticised South Australia's funding cut for the Basin, amid recent moves to improve the health of the water ecosystem.

The South Australian Labor government cut $14.3 million in funding from 2014/15 for the Basin in the mid-year budget review released on Thursday.

This is a 50 per cent cut in the state's joint funding contribution to the Basin plan.

MDBA chair Craig Knowles says he is "dismayed" about South Australia's decision to cut future contributions for river operations, maintenance and natural resource programs in the Basin.

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"This decision further unravels an historic co-operative and internationally recognised arrangement between the Basin governments that dates back nearly 100 years to the River Murray Water Agreement," Mr Knowles said in a statement on Thursday.

The House of Representatives passed a bill in November for the Basin to receive an extra 450 gigalitres of water along with the establishment of a special account for $1.77 billion in Commonwealth funds to buy the extra water.

Federal opposition water spokesman Barnaby Joyce said South Australia premier Jay Weatherill looked like a "complete and utter hypocrite" following his government's cut to funding for environmental projects.

"A mischievous hypocrite at that, given he has tried to avoid scrutiny by announcing these cuts after Swan's surplus dive and his own budget cuts in South Australia," Senator Joyce said in a statement on Thursday.

Mr Knowles said the funding cut by South Australia followed NSW's decision in June to slash $20 million from the delivery of joint programs and a further $3 million cut next year.

He said this was clearly unsustainable, particularly if the other states of the Basin followed suit.

This would equate to the joint program budget being lowered to $27 million by 2014-15, down from this year's allocation of $110 million, Mr Knowles said.

"I am very concerned that this level of funding will be insufficient to cover even basic river operations, such as water delivery to irrigators, and insufficient to adequately maintain $2.5 billion worth of river assets, such as dams, weirs and locks, including Hume and Dartmouth dams and the South Australian barrages," he said.

"It will also mean there will be no funding for any natural resource programs in the Basin."